Opinion SC07-771

Supreme Court of Florida ____________ No. SC07-771 ____________ RONALD PALMER HEATH, Appellant, vs. STATE OF FLORIDA, Appellee. [January 29, 2009] PER CURIAM. Appellant Ronald Palmer Heath seeks review of an order which denied him postconviction relief under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.851. Heath challenged his capital murder conviction for which a sentence of death was imposed. This Court possesses jurisdiction pursuant to article V, section 3(b)(1) of the Florida Constitution. I. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY Guilt and Penalty Phases A jury convicted Ronald Palmer Heath of the first-degree murder of Michael Sheridan, armed robbery, conspiracy to commit uttering a forgery, conspiracy to commit forgery, forgery (seven counts), and uttering a forgery (seven counts). See Heath v. State, 648 So. 2d 660, 662-63 (Fla. 1994). For the murder of Sheridan, the jury recommended the death penalty by a vote of ten to two. See id. at 663. Following that recommendation, the trial court sentenced Heath to death for the murder. See id.1 In its opinion affirming the imposition of the death penalty, the Court detailed the facts surrounding the murder: Heath and his younger brother, Kenneth, drove to Gainesville to visit some of Heath’s friends. On May 24, 1989, the brothers went to the Purple Porpoise Lounge in Gainesville where two of Heath’s friends worked as waitresses. Sometime during the evening the brothers struck up a conversation with Sheridan, a traveling salesman who had come to the lounge for drinks and dinner. Sheridan bought the brothers a drink and inquired if they ever got high or had any marijuana. Heath suggested to Kenneth that they take Sheridan somewhere and rob him; Kenneth agreed. The trio left the bar in Kenneth’s vehicle, which Heath drove to an isolated area of Alachua County. After parking on a dirt road, all three got out of the car and smoked marijuana. Heath made the hand motion of a pistol and asked Kenneth, “Did you get it?” Kenneth retrieved a small-caliber handgun from under the car seat, pointed it at Sheridan, and told him that he was being robbed. Sheridan balked at giving the brothers anything. Heath told Kenneth to shoot Sheridan. When Sheridan lunged at Kenneth, Kenneth shot him in the chest. Sheridan sat down, saying “it hurt.” As Sheridan began to remove his possessions, Heath kicked him and stabbed him in the neck with a hunting knife. Heath attempted to slit Sheridan’s throat, but was unable to complete the 1. Heath was sentenced to life imprisonment as a habitual offender for the armed-robbery conviction. See id. With regard to the convictions for conspiracy to commit forgery and conspiracy to commit uttering a forgery, Heath was sentenced to six months with credit for time served. See id. With regard to the forgery and uttering-a-forgery convictions, Heath was sentenced to consecutive sentences of ten years as a habitual offender. See id. - 2 - task with the dull knife and could only saw at Sheridan’s neck. Heath then instructed Kenneth to kill Sheridan with the gun, and Kenneth shot him twice in the head. The brothers moved the body further into the woods. After returning to the Purple Porpoise, the brothers took Sheridan’s rental car to a remote area, removed some items, and burned the car. The next day the brothers used Sheridan’s credit cards to purchase clothes, shoes, and other items at a Gainesville mall. The brothers returned to Jacksonville and tossed the handgun into the St. John’s River. The handgun was never recovered. Heath eventually returned to the trailer which he shared with Powell [his girlfriend] in Georgia. A medical examiner was dispatched to the scene of the murder on May 30, 1989, to examine the body, which was in a moderately advanced state of decomposition. The examiner estimated that death had occurred three to ten days earlier and that death was caused by multiple gunshot wounds and a sharp force injury to the neck. Several weeks after the murder, Heath was arrested at his trailer for using the stolen credit cards. Powell granted the officers permission to search the trailer and her car. The officers discovered some of the clothes purchased in Gainesville and Sheridan’s watch. Both brothers were indicted for the first-degree murder and armed robbery of Sheridan. Kenneth entered into a plea agreement wherein he pled guilty to the charges and agreed to testify about Sheridan’s murder. Kenneth was sentenced to life imprisonment without eligibility for parole for twenty-five years for the murder conviction. Heath’s trial commenced on November 5, 1990. The primary evidence linking Heath to the crime was the testimony of Kenneth, Heath’s possession of a watch which could be traced to Sheridan through its serial number, and Heath’s possession of certain merchandise acquired in Gainesville with Sheridan’s stolen credit cards. Id. at 662. In imposing the death sentence, the trial court found two aggravating factors: (1) Heath had been convicted of a prior violent felony (second-degree murder), and - 3 - (2) the murder was committed during the course of an armed robbery. See id. at 663. With regard to mitigation, the trial judge found one statutory mitigating circumstance—that Heath was under the influence of an extreme mental or emotional disturbance as a result of his consumption of alcohol and marijuana— and two nonstatutory mitigating circumstances—that Heath demonstrated good character in prison, and that codefendant Kenneth Heath received a life sentence. See id. Direct Appeal In his direct appeal, Heath raised the following issues: (1) the trial court erred when it overruled Heath’s objection to a comment by the State during opening statements which reflected on Heath’s right to remain silent; (2) the trial court erred when it permitted testimony with regard to Sheridan’s good character; (3) the trial court erred when it admitted the testimony of cellmate Wayburn Williams, which addressed Heath’s plans to escape from pretrial detention; (4) the trial court erred when it ruled that the testimony of Heath’s employer was irrelevant; (5) the trial court improperly excluded a statement that Heath made to his girlfriend as he unpacked his luggage upon his return from Florida; (6) the trial court erred when it sentenced Heath to death because he was no more culpable than his brother Kenneth, who received a life sentence; (7) the trial court erred when it read to the jury an unconstitutionally vague instruction with regard to the - 4 - heinous, atrocious, and cruel aggravating circumstance; (8) the trial court erred when it sentenced Heath as a habitual offender for the crime of armed robbery; and (9) the habitual felony offender statute is unconstitutional because it violates due process and equal protection. See id. at 663-66. This Court denied relief on all claims and affirmed Heath’s convictions and sentences. See id. at 666.2 Postconviction Proceedings On August 2, 2004, Heath filed his initial rule 3.851 motion. On April 18, 2005, Heath filed an amended rule 3.851 motion which raised twenty claims.3 2. The Court concluded that the State impermissibly commented on Heath’s right to remain silent during opening statements, but held that the error was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. See id. at 663. 3. The claims presented were based on ineffective assistance of counsel: (I) during the penalty phase for the failure to develop Kenneth Heath’s testimony; (II) during the guilt phase for the failure to develop Kenneth’s testimony; (III) during the guilt phase for the failure to present voluntary intoxication as a defense and offer evidence that Heath was intoxicated as a mitigating circumstance; (IV) during the guilt phase for the failure to advise Heath of the availability of the voluntary intoxication defense; (V) during the penalty phase for the failure to raise as a mitigating circumstance the fact that Heath suffers from severe antisocial personality disorder; (VI) during the guilt phase for the failure to request a jury instruction on the voluntary intoxication defense; (VII) during the guilt phase for the failure to call witnesses to demonstrate that Heath acted under the domination of Kenneth; (VIII) during the penalty phase for the failure to call witnesses to demonstrate that Heath acted under the domination of Kenneth; (IX) during the guilt phase for the failure to call material witnesses; (X) during the guilt phase for the failure to ensure that Heath was present during all pretrial motion hearings and the allocution hearing; (XI) during the penalty phase for the failure to challenge the “committed in the course of a felony” aggravating circumstance, which constitutes an impermissible “doubler”; (XII) during the guilt phase for the failure to request a special verdict form which would require the jury to choose between premeditated - 5 - After a Huff4 hearing, the trial court granted an evidentiary hearing on nine of the claims and denied the remainder.5 A primary focus of the evidentiary hearing involved the recanted testimony of Kenneth Heath, the key witness for the State during Heath’s trial, and Heath’s codefendant, who shot Sheridan three times. During the evidentiary hearing, Kenneth recounted that on the night of the murder he informed Heath that Sheridan wanted to smoke marijuana. Heath responded to Kenneth that they could rob Sheridan, and Kenneth agreed. Kenneth and Heath, before leaving the bar, murder and felony murder; (XIII) during the penalty phase for the failure to request a special verdict form which would require the jury to specify the aggravating factors found; (XIV) for the failure to assert that the indictment was insufficient because it failed to specify the aggravating circumstances upon which the State intended to rely; and (XV) for the failure to file motions to preserve challenges with regard to aggravating circumstances, jury override, and unanimous verdicts.

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